Plowing device foe



L. FRIEDMAN AND D. WALLACE.

FLOWING DEVICE FOR WELLS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 27| 1922.

Patented May 2, 1922.

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' INI/.enfans La ues Fm'eana/v TIE WITNESSES A TTUR/VEYS UNITE- D STATES rnrsn'r orFlcE.

Y y nouns FRIEDMAM MUNCIE,

innrniva, annnnvrn WALLACE, or TULSA), OKLAHOMA.

FLQWINGDEVICE ron, WELLS.

To all fur/tomv t 'may concern.' Y

Beit known that we, Locus FBIEDMAN and Davie VAL'LnoE,v citizens of the United States, and residents, respectively, of Muncie, in the county of Delaware and State of' Indiana, and Tulsa, inY the county of Tulsa specification,

and-State of Oklahoma, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flowing `Devices for l/Vells, of which the following is a specification'. l

v Our present invention relates generally to iiowing devices for wells, and more particularly to devices adapted to promote the flow of oil from oil wells where insufficient pressure exists to cause flow throughV the well casing, although our invention is adapted for use in connection with water as well as oil and under the inliuence of either the lnatural'existing pressures or pressures intro* duced for they purpose-of bringing about the desired operation. p

It 'is Vav well vknown fact/that particularly in caseof oil wells,`relatively low pressure will fail to cause flow of oil upwardly through the well casing and it becomes necessary to use-*means forvpiunpingjthe oil out of the well' involving all of the expensive apparatus commonly incident to pumping operations' of thisv nature and involving waste of what pressure, for instance 'gaspresf sure, exists. i c Through the use of ouriinproved device we take advantage' of the vnatural gas pressure in forcing the oil as it accumulates in Vthe `bottom of a well to flow naturally and continuously throughout iiow tubes', and we tra vthe das ressure for this ur ose usino b 7 o ingkthe saine with or without the introduction of additional pressureas may be necesdevice singularly free of valves and other 'complicated parts, and one which may be readily and easily introduced into varmll and removed therefrom. Y

ln the-accompanying ldra-wing illustrating our invention and forming a part of `this Figure 1 isy a vertical sectional view through our invention illustrating the saine `in its practical application,

. e: expansion gasket, and

`Figure 2 is a detail perspective view of the i Specificationof Letter-s Patent.

Figure 3 is a cross section through our improved device taken on line 3 3 of Figure 1.

Referring now to these gures our inventionis connected to the lower end of an outflow tube 10, as for instance by means of a coupling sleeve "11', and includes an inner cylindricalbarrel l2, attached to the outflow tube 10 by -means of the cylindrical coupling 11 the latter of which may be in the form of a swage nipple where for instance an outflow tube is desired of smaller diameter than that of the barrel 12.

The barrel- 12'is externally threaded for a considerable distance from its upper end to receive an internally and externally threaded cast ring 13 as well as an expansion gasket 14 between the cast ring 13 and the coupling Connected to the cast ring 13 'by an internally threaded coupling sleeve 18 is the upper externally'threadedone of a cylindricalouter shell-19 which surrounds the lower portion of the innerbarrel 12 inspaced relation so as to form a chamber between these parts upwardly into which oil and gas are free to flow, the lower end of the shell 19 being preferably threaded on its exterior for theconnection of any suitable screening device should the latter be found necessary or desirable, it being noted that the'lower end 'of the barrel 12 depends below the lower end of thisshell and `is likewisethreaded on its exterior at its lower end so that any suitable anchor may be attached thereto should the use of an anchor become necessary or desirable.`

Approximately opposite the cast ring 13, the barrel 12 is closed'by 'means of a plug 20 threadedtherein, this plug serving for the support of the upper end of one or more pressure tubes 21, the upper threaded'ends of which extend upwardly beyondand open above the plug and are externally threaded to receive retaining nuts 22 and are also preferably provided with threaded protecting sleeves 23. v

The pressure tubes 21 depend within the barrel 12 and have lower outturned ends 24,

Y Patented May 2, 1922.` Application mea March 27, 1922; serial No. 546,948'.

that oil and gas may enter the lower outer ends thereof and, by virtue of the small cross section of' the tubes7 enable a comparatively low gas pressure to lift the oil through the tubes where this gas pressure would be insuliicient to effect lifting of the oil in the well casing 17 or even in the outflow tube 1() into which the upper ends of the pressure tubes 21 discharge. y

In the upward movement of the oil through the outflow'tube 10, it may of course be controlled 'by one or more check valves placed at any suitable points in the length of the tube, and it is obvious that the pressure tubes 21 may be utilized in varying numbers and but a single one employed in instances where the pressure is not suiicient to force the oil upwardly through more than a single tube.

Thus by forcing the flow device provided by our invention downwardly in a well, the gas pressure is trapped below the expansion gasket and collects within the shell 19 along withthe oil as the latter seeps from the oil sandsupon or slightly above which the flow device is positioned, whereby the oil will be constantly forced by the,v gas pressure upwardly through the pressure tubes and into the outflow tube and a steady flow of oil and gas brought about in this manner, the gas itself being by virtue of this intimate contact with the oil rendered extremely rich in gasoline which may be subsequently withdrawn in the usual manner of extracting casing head gas.

i Where in spite of the presence of the pressure tubes 21 the gas pressure is insuiiicient to cause the oil to flow, we may utilize a pressure y introducing line 26 extending downwardly in the well casing 17 alongside the outflow tube 10 and downwardly through ,the expansion gasket 14 into the space between the shell 19 andthe barrel 12, the' lower end of this 'pressureintroducing tube being preferably extended `slightly below the lower end of the shell 19 and externally threaded as shown in Figure 1 so as to provide for the ready attachment of 'an extension thereon either of a perforate or imperforate nature.

The expansion gasket 14 which as above stated is utilized between washers 15 and 16, is preferably of the form best seen by a comparison of Figures 1 and2, being constructed of soft rubber and having its periphery provided with an annular series of notches or recesses 27 so that it is readily compressible to some extent sufficient to permit it yto be easily introduced into and removed from a well casing aswell as to allow it to yield in the .presence of blisters or internal protuberances of the well casing.

By thus providinga device whereby the gas may be entrapped in the lower part of a well and caused to flow through a pressure tube or channel the cross section of' which -is such as to bring about flow in the presence of gas pressure materially less than that required to bring about flow upwardly in the well casing or even inthe outflow tube 10, and by providing a device which will in this way insure a steady outflow of oil and gas,

we not only greatly increase the recoverable port-ion of the oil production, but we also do away with the disadvantages of an intermittent flow and collect and discharge the oil as it accumulates so as to avoid dead oil in the bottom of the well,

le claim:A

1. A flowing device vfor oil wells including a cylindrical shell open at its lower end to receive oil and gas therein, and closed at its upper end, an outflow tube having connection with the upper end of the cylindrical shell and by means of which the latter may be lowered into a well casing, a tube supporting barrel within and spaced from the shell, and one or more pressure tubes within the barrel, the lower ends of which open through the barrel and into the shell, and the upper ends offwhich open into the said outdow tube. l

2. A flowing device for'wells including a cylindrical shell for introduction within a well casing, having a lower open end, a barrel within and spaced fromY the shell, having its upper end extended beyond the upper end of the shell, a ring around the the upper end thereof through the plug 0f the barrel and opening into Vthe outflow tube.

3. A flowing device for wells including a cylindrical shell for introduction Vwithin a well casing, having a lower open end,a barrel within and spaced from the shell, having its -upper end extended beyond the upper end of the shell, a ying around the barrel to which the upper end of the shell is coupled, an Aoutflow tube coupled to the upwardly projecting end of the barrel, a plug within the upper portion of the barrel, and one or more pressure tubes secured at the lower end thereof through the barrel and opening into the shell and secured at the upper end thereof through the plug of the barrel and opening into the outflow tube, and an expansion gasket around the upper portion of the barrel and seated on the ring at the upper end of the shell.

4. A flowing device for wells including a cylindrical shell forinsertion within a well casing, open at its lower end, a ring to which the upper end of the shell is coupled, a barrel extending` through the shell in spaced relation thereto, having a portion projecting through and above the said ring, an outflow tube connected to the upper end of the barrel, a plug within the upper portion of the barrel, a pressure tube within the barrel having a lower outturned end secured through the Wall of the barrel and opening into the space between the barrel and the shell and having its upper end secured through the plugpand opening into the said outflow tube.

5. A flowing device for wells including Va cylindrical shell for insertion within a well casing, open at its lower end, 'a'ring to which the upper end of the shell is coupled, a barrel extending through the shell in spaced relation thereto, having a portion projecting through and above the said ring, an outiiow tube connected to the upper end oit the barrel, a plug within the upper| portion of the barrel, a pressure tube within the barrel having a lower outturned end secured through the wall ofthe barrel and opening into the space between the barrel and the shell and having its upper end secured through the plug and opening into the said` outiow tube, and an expansion barrel opens, and a pressure tube within the barrel and connected to the latter adjacent to its opposite ends, they lower end of said tube opening into the shell and the upper j end thereof opening into the outflow line.

7. ,A flowing device for wells, including a cylindrical shell closed at its upper end and open at its lower end to receive pressure therein, a barrel mounted lengthwise through the shell, an outiow line communieating with the upper end of the barrel, and a pressure tube supported within the barrel `with its lower end opening into the shell and with its upper end opening into the outflow line. i

8. A `tlowing device for wells including a downwardly opening fluid and pressure receiver insertable in a `well casing, having an outflow line connected to its upper closed end, a pressure tube forming the sole means of communication between the interior of said receiverA and the said outilow line, and means disposed within and connected to the said receiver for supporting the said tube adjacent to its opposite ends.

1 LOUES FRIEDMAN.

DAVID WALLACE. 

